The Art of Living in Conversation©

Gordon Pask Estate, Gordon Pask Archives, Institut für Zeitgeschichte, University of Vienna

A Conversation about the Cybernetician Gordon Pask

Tue, 08.03.2022, 6 pm CET

The Art of Living in Conversation | ZKM

This is lightly edited (so errors all mine) from Keryck/”Mori Totebag” in The Abs-Tract Organization Discord Server (for metamodernist left-wing discussion – see https://abs-tract.org/).

I thought it was particularly interesting because it sweeps in so much, and for the single core concept ‘copoiesis’ (which I can find a *few* mentions of online, in an artistic context).

Post one: semipermeable membranes & autopoesis —mutually reinforced white supremacist systemic institutions

> {re: “White Supremacy as Living System” by Irami Osei-Frimpong

inside and outside, and a membrane, yup

i call that collective (“outside”), autonomy‐agency (“inside”) and prehension‐agency (“semipermeable membrane”)

the outside of white supremacy is White Habitus, the inside is White Chauvinism, and the membrane is White Fragility (though that term is abused) especially in the white family and church (not letting some things in that would challenge their internal dynamics) & blaxploitation (taking in black ppl [and occasional other racialized ppls] into their metabolism then spitting them out when no longer useful to White supremacy).

ppl who aren’t white can start to take on these facets of behavior through coercion, artificial scarcity, the caste system inextricable of capitalism has a way that allows white supremacy to hyperexploit Black ppl (and indigenous, but im focused on Irami’s topic primarily).

Irami Osei-Frimpong – The Funky Academic
White Supremacy: A Living System

Post two: a perhaps “systemic conspiracy” against the co-poetic aspect of human subjectivity

a perhaps “systemic conspiracy” against the co-poetic aspect of human subjectivity, rendering humans ill-equipped to imagine an ethics that fully addresses our basic needs for care, encounter, sharing of trauma, trauma healing, resistance of narcissism, compassion-informed empathy rather than a passive empathy as automatic process that is never given institutional protection and support.

she traces this neglect of copoeisis to monotheism, through Christendom, and into the commodity fetishism that capitalism supplies as our only source of temporary relief of trauma (cheap thrills, so to speak, without consummate humanizing care).

she relates this neglect to the historical subjugation of both pregnancy & human creativity in general to serve the ruling class structures in a way that disarms everyday ppl from resisting dehumanization in ethics, philosophy, economy, art, and even language.

———————COPOESIS + feminism,,,
without robust interdisciplinary and societal/layperson recognition of COpoesis, not just the autopoesis that phallic ideals over-emphasize, ethics & philosophy remain incapable of addressing human affairs appropriately & sustainably
———

anti-abortion & feminine-antagonistic arguments are based on a failure to move beyond classical non-ethical thinking on Life-Drive & Death-Drive, which only think in service of the reproduction of non-human & non-subjects (“life-drive” in Freud is about reproduction of germ cells, “libido” in Lacan is about splitting and cocoons of amoeba & lamella, etc…).

autopoesis by itself fails to take into account the copoeisis that is integral to human subjectivity, whose groundwork is laid by interconnection in late pregnancy (when nervous system is fully formed, but prior to birth) of the pre-subjective affects of people as a social species, through birth and early post-natal catastrophic learning events that shape how humans relate to both other humans, non-humans and themselves as a full subject later on in life.

the prevalence of non-human, un-humanized life-drive (though still relevance) eschew people’s ability to construct ethics that take copoesis, empathy, sharing, the groundwork of subjectivity, etc, into account—rendering these attempted ethics inappropriate and incomplete for human needs and desires.

this is also reflected in language (and what some languages, to varying degrees, don’t adequately symbolize), so our ethics—thus also therapy ethics—and linguistics currently need metafeminist philosophy in order to make sense of the tension between feminist activism & prevailing symbols and concepts regarding gender, pregnancy, femininity, eroticism, choice, subjectivity, needs, etc.

Bracha L Ettinger Metafeminist and Feminist Notes. Oxytocin Mothering the World, London March 2019
Procreate Project

Post three: digital stupor, isolation, narcissism and retraumatization

an effect of this neglect of copoeisis is the addiction to “digital stupor” that prevents us from dealing with trauma together, and leads us to retraumatize ourselves in this stupor and narcissistically compete and attack each other for instant gratification without compassion, in an accelerated space that makes our connection stronger but our interconnection more and more anti-social & incapable of creating spaces of healing or growth for each other (unless we resist the instantaneousness of the very media we use to communicate)

Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea
XII. Digital PTSD. The Practice of Art and Its Impact on Digital Trauma | Bracha Ettinger

Comment from Benjamin David Steele
“autopoesis by itself fails to take into account the copoeisis that is integral to human subjectivity, whose groundwork is laid by interconnection in late pregnancy (when nervous system is fully formed, but prior to birth) of the pre-subjective affects of people as a social species, through birth and early post-natal catastrophic learning events that shape how humans relate to both other humans, non-humans and themselves as a full subject later on in life.”

That deeply resonates with me. I’ve never heard the term copoeisis. It is a good term for getting at the intrinsic social nature of humans (and many other species) that is deep within our biology. This can be understood also in terms of epigenetics. I’m often reminded of the mice who were shocked into jumping after smelling a scent and for many generations following the mice kept jumping simply with the scent. The 7 generations of jumping mice would be the equivalent of 2-3 centuries of human society.

Now think about all of the major events and social institutions (from genocide to slavery) that potentially exist within this epigenetic reach of intergenerational trauma. But the same applies for positive changes in recent history, such as increased education and literacy, not to mention the effective treatment of most infectious diseases. This is why progress can only be measured over the very long term. Public health does have immediate effects. And yet policies we implement now might not show their full effect until the centuries following.

Possibility space

Gordon Brander

Mar 18

Possibility space – by Gordon Brander – Subconscious

Exploring a holistic approach to levelling up

Exploring a holistic approach to levelling up – Renaisi

Whether for company mergers, for the restructuring of an enterprise, for targeting new corporate markets or for achieving new goals in any institution, the Oroborus Foundation methodically determines the best solution. And it does so quickly, with concrete measures that bring clear results.

Fondation Oroborus – Die Stiftung für erfolgreiche Organisationen

Stewart Brand@stewartbrandChris Alexander is gone. I owe him a great deal. Many do.For me it began with his NOTES ON THE SYNTHESIS OF FORM in 1964, soared with A PATTERN LANGUAGE in 1977, and culminated with all the help he gave to my HOW BUILDINGS LEARN (1987-1994).

Stewart Brand on Twitter: “Chris Alexander is gone. I owe him a great deal. Many do. For me it began with his NOTES ON THE SYNTHESIS OF FORM in 1964, soared with A PATTERN LANGUAGE in 1977, and culminated with all the help he gave to my HOW BUILDINGS LEARN (1987-1994).” / Twitter

Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Alexander

An early obit:

https://www.planetizen.com/news/2022/03/116579-christopher-alexander-influential-author-pattern-language-passes-away-85

Drawing inspiration from the Nataraja for systems thinking

Published on March 20, 2022

Rajneesh Chowdhury, PhD

Drawing inspiration from the Nataraja for systems thinking | LinkedIn

The LinkedIn article above provides an overview – the paper is still paywalled:

https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/jmsr/rmsr20/2022/00000019/00000002/art00003

Home / Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, Volume 19, Number 2

Holistic Flexibility for Critical Systems Thinking Inspired by the Nataraja

Author: Chowdhury, Rajneesh

Source: Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, Volume 19, Number 2, March 2022, pp. 154-185(32)

Publisher: International Association of Management, Spirituality & Religion

DOI: https://doi.org/10.51327/NHIY7714

MAR29

The Bateson 50th & 10th Anniversaries Commemoration Kick-off

March 2022

The Bateson 50th & 10th Anniversaries Commemoration Kick-off—March 2022 Registration, Tue, Mar 29, 2022 at 5:00 PM | Eventbrite

MAR

29

The Bateson 50th & 10th Anniversaries Commemoration Kick-off—March 2022

by International Bateson InstituteFollow

106 followers

Free

Actions and Detail Panel

• Share this event

Register

Event Information

Bateson 50th & 10th Anniversaries Commemoration—a year-long series of offerings exploring Batesonian ideas.

About this event

Bateson Anniversaries Commemoration

50th of Steps to an Ecology of Mind

&

10th of Warm Data

Join us for the kick-off of a year-long series of warm offerings—each an exploration in mutual inquiry of Gregory’s seminal ideas—double bind, schismogenesis, play, deutero learning, communication, ecology, multiple description, abductive process, differences of abstraction and difference that makes a difference, mind, and interrelationships.

The conversations will happen in conjunction with Warm Data Labs and People Need People sessions—to commemorate the momentous confluence for the Bateson family lineage with the 50th Anniversary of Steps to an Ecology of Mind by Gregory Bateson and Nora Bateson’s work, Warm Data, birthed on a paper napkin 10 years ago and evolving into a rigorous practice called Warm Data Labs with over 630 hosts worldwide.

Hosted by Nora Bateson, International Bateson Institute, & Bateson Idea Group

Some of the guests throughout the year-long series include:

• Barry Schwartz
• Carlos Alvarez-Pereira
• Erik Graffman
• Fanny Marell
• Fred Steier
• Göran Janson
• Howard Kornfeld
• Imelda McCarthy
• Jeff Bloom
• Karin Schanger
• Katja Neves
• Lance Strate
• Leslie Eubanks
• Lois Bateson
• Louise Lowings
• Maimunah Mosli
• Nicole Anne Boyer
• Nicole Boyer
• Per Jensen
• Phoebe Tickell
• Phillip Guddemi
• Rex Weyler
• Roxana Vatanparast
• Serena Dinelli
• Sevanne Kassarjian
• Stephen Nachmanovitch
• Thomas Hylland Eriksen
• Tim Gasperak
• Tim Keanini
• Tom Cummings
• Wendel Ray
• Ylva Telegin

Find out more about Warm Data

Find out more about the International Bateson Institute

Find out more about the Bateson Ideas Group

Date and time

Tue, March 29, 2022

4:00 PM – 5:30 PM BST

Systems Convening in Practice – a Chat with Madi Hoskin

Systems Convening in Practice – a Chat with Madi Hoskin, Diane Ketley

Madi shares her knowledge and experience of systems convening in practice in a video with accompanying blog.
Details in this tweet https://twitter.com/DianeKetley/status/1504448814513594368. 
Blog and video https://nhshorizons.passle.net/post/102hju4/systems-convening-in-practice-a-chat-with-madi-hoskin

The role of non-conservative interactions innon-equilibrium stochastic systems

A Hybrid Complex Systems Seminar

The role of non-conservative interactions in non-equilibrium stochastic systemsA Hybrid Complex Systems Seminar

Sarah Loos  Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) Trieste, Italy Tuesday, March 22, 2022 11:30AM EST Weiser Hall Room 747  https://umich.zoom.us/j/96616169868 Password: CSCS (all caps)Link to full event listingHybrid Seminar https://umich.zoom.us/j/96616169868 Password: CSCS (all caps)Abstract: The complex world surrounding us, including all living matter and various artificial complex systems, mostly operates far from thermal equilibrium. A major goal of modern statistical physics and thermodynamics is to unravel the fundamental principles that govern the individual dynamics and collective behavior of such nonequilibrium systems, like the swarming of fish or flocking of birds. A novel key concept to describe and classify nonequilibrium systems is the stochastic entropy production, which explicitly quantifies the breaking of time-reversal symmetry. However, so far, little attention has been paid to the implications of non-conservative interactions, such as time-delayed (i.e., retarded) or non-reciprocal interactions, which cannot be represented by Hamiltonians contrasting all interactions traditionally considered in statistical physics. Non-conservative interactions indeed emerge commonly in biological, chemical and feedback systems, and are widespread in engineering and machine learning. In this talk, I will use simple time- and space-continuous models to discuss technical challenges and unexpected physical phenomena induced by non-reciprocity [1,2] and time delay [3,4]. [1] Loos and Klapp, NJP 22, 123051 (2020) [2] Loos, Hermann, and Klapp, Entropy 23, 696 (2021) [3] Loos and Klapp, Sci. Rep. 9, 2491 (2019) [4] Holubec, Geiss, Loos, Kroy, and Cichos, PRL 127, 258001 (2021) Coffee Talk! Join us early for coffee chat.  The meeting will open 15 minutes before the seminar start time. Feel free to join us. Microphones and video will be enabled so you can engage in conversation around the virtual coffee table! Once the seminar begins, microphones will be turned to mute, and you can choose to remain visible to the speaker (everyone likes an audience!) or to mute your video as the seminar begins.  Questions can be submitted in the chat.

Control and Correlationmarch 15, 2022 slimemoldtimemoldcybernetics, statistics

Control and Correlation – SLIME MOLD TIME MOLD

⌜ktb⌟@kevinbakerIf you’re interested in the history of feedback thinking before cybernetics and digital computation, this is as good place to start. It treats servo engineering, etc, as more than just a prelude to cybernetics.

(1) ⌜ktb⌟ on Twitter: “If you’re interested in the history of feedback thinking before cybernetics and digital computation, this is as good place to start. It treats servo engineering, etc, as more than just a prelude to cybernetics. https://t.co/eSLqXt5bdI” / Twitter

Also noteworthy: “It’s one of the most important things I read in graduate school. Even though it’s about the prewar period, it really helps you understand the postwar engineering moment and and think beyond cybernetics’ imperial, universalizing project.” … “One of the core arguments is that the “engineering cultures” that developed during the interwar period weren’t subsumed by cybernetics. These cultures persisted, as did their distinctive ways of understanding feedback, system boundaries, etc.”

User oppression in human-computer interaction: a dialectical-existential perspectiveGonzatto, R.F. and van Amstel, F.M.C. (2022),

User oppression in human-computer interaction: a dialectical-existential perspective – Frederick van Amstel

Cat Drop Borneo

Does the story hang together?

Gene Bellinger

Cat Drop Borneo – by Gene Bellinger – SystemsWiki’s Musings